This is a online journal of a scoutmaster's thoughts on over 30 years as a Boy Scout Leader.

Archive for the ‘Nostalgia’ Category

I was contacted tonight on Facebook by a fellow Scouter from Illinois. Kevin Miller was wondering what is going on with PTC Media these days. For those of you new to this blog, PTC Media was a website featuring a collection of Scouting related podcasts, featuring shows about Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting. At its peak the site featured six podcasts, with another one or two short lived shows. I created two podcasts, the Melrose Scout Productions Podcast (MSPP), which was a video show, and Around The Scouting Campfire, an audio program hosted by myself and Buttons, the radical Boy Scout. I also co-hosted the Leaders Campfire with Cubmaster Chris. The site can be found at http://www.ptcmedia.net/ .

Unfortunately, the answer to Kevin’s question was that not much is happening these days at the website. Many of the podcast hosts have moved on to other things, and some are not involved with the Scouting program any longer. Fortunately, Cubmaster Chris, the caretaker of the PTC Media, has decided to keep the site up and running so people can still listen to or watch the many podcast episodes created during the last eight years. Many of them hold information that is still relevant to today’s Scouting program. I still post a new video to the Melrose Scout Productions Podcast occasionally.

Kevin really liked the podcasts and PTC Media. He liked them so well that he made one of the points of his Wood Badge ticket to hold a Podcast Awareness Day featuring the shows found at PTC Media. And boy, did he go all out. In 2010 he created audio cd’s of the shows, over a 100 for each of the main shows, and had a banner created for his booth. (See in the picture above.) He also created business cards, srtickers, half sheets, and full sheets to promote the shows. I am sure his efforts gave a nice boost to our downloads, and it was great to see someone who really appreciated our time and effort into creating the shows.

After a short online chat with Kevin this evening it almost made me feel guilty about not creating more podcast episodes on a regular schedule. I do still have a few videos to finish editing and post to MSPP. I have even thought about doing another episode or two for Around The Scouting Campfire. My idea was to actually record a couple stories as I tell them to the Boy Scouts around a campfire some night. (I should have recorded last Saturday’s Purple Gorilla story.) I just don’t know if people would like to download them and listen to them, if it would be worth my time and effort.

Kevin has given me permission to use his photos for this blog post. What do you think about his podcast promotion? I think it is awesome.

With this year’s Boy Scouts of America National Jamboree now a part of history, it has made me think about the 2001 Jamboree which I attended as the scoutmaster of Central Minnesota Council Troop 1417, one of two troops we sent to Fort A.P. Hill that year. I brought back several things from that event that I just had to pull out of the closet after seeing all the pictures online from this year’s extravaganza.

As I was looking through my tote of Jamboree items, I came across some things that made me wonder if they are still printed for the current Jamboree. One highlight of each day was when the Jamboree Today newspaper arrived at the campsite. This daily paper, printed at the Jamboree, was quickly snatched up by the Boy Scouts and adult leaders. Each issue included color pictures of previous day’s activities, interviews with Scouts and leaders, and information about upcoming events and activities. We all quickly skimmed the photos to see if any of us had made it into the paper. Unfortunately, no one from my troop did, but it was still fun to read the newspaper. Many of the Boy Scouts keep their copy as a memento of the Jamboree.

Another daily bulletin delivered to each camp was the Leader’s Update. It was a short handout for the troop leaders and camp staff featuring all sorts of things important to us, but not necessarily interesting to the youth. If there was something I thought would be of interest to the Scouts I would bring it up to the youth leaders or talk to the troop when we had assembly. I still have nine of the editions, but unfortunately I am missing a couple of them.

So my question to those of you who attended the 2013 Jamboree, did they still print these two publications for the campers and troop leaders? Or were they found online? Or both? Did you keep your copies for a memento and add them to your Jamboree collection?

By the way, if you click or tap on the pictures you will be able to see a larger version of the photo.

The Boy Scouts of America’s website states this about the the Aims of Scouting: The purpose of the Boy Scouts of America — incorporated on Feb. 8, 1910, and chartered by Congress in 1916 — is to provide an educational program for boys and young adults to build character, to train in the responsibilities of participating citizenship, and to develop personal fitness.

Character, citizenship, and personal fitness. Those are three outstanding goals to teach our young men. The site lists the methods, or building blocks of Scouting, as nine points: Advancement, Community Organizations and Scouting Councils, Personal Growth, Leadership, the Order of the Arrow, the Outdoors, the Patrol Method, Scouting Values, and Scouts with Special Needs. (See http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/BoyScouts/TheBuildingBlocksofScouting.aspx )

While the main goals of Scouting have stayed the same through the decades there have been changes in the way the B.S.A. has stated these aims and methods. I decided to pull down a couple versions of the Scoutmaster Handbook from my collection to read what they say about these subjects, and see what, if any, differences there are between then and now.

First, let’s look back to the 1990 version of The Scoutmaster Handbook.
The Aims of Scouting are listed on page 69. They are:
Aim 1 – To build character.
Aim 2 – To foster citizenship.
Aim 3 – To develop fitness.

The book goes on to explain character on page 70.It’s a “complex of mental and ethical traits”, says one dictionary. It’s “moral or ethical quality” says another. It’s qualities of honesty, courage, and integrity”, says a third. To these perfectly good descriptions we add four “self” qualities that Scouting, over the years, has been especially successful in developing in boys, self-reliance, self-discipline, self-confidence, and self-respect. When a boy begins to develop these, he begins to develop character.

This book says about citizenship: The wise Scoutmaster can guide his Scouts not only to love their country, but to understand it, know more about its heritage and history, encounter the democracy that knits together its many cultures into a nation that welcomes them all. And thus find joy in serving it.It is growth in your Scouts to that level of citizenship in which you, as Scoutmaster, will find your joy.

The book says about Aim 3, developing fitness – The third aim, developing fitness, covers a broader territory, for Scouting recognizes four areas of fitness: physical, mental, emotional, and moral. I sometimes see today’s Scout leaders emphasizing the physical fitness and forgetting about the other three, which is a shame.

That 1990 version of the handbook lists the eight (yes, eight) Methods of Scouting as: Ideals, Patrols, Outdoors, Advancement, Personal Growth, Adult Association, Leadership development, and Uniform. These were the methods I based my 30 years of scoutmastership upon. This list is a bit different then found on today’s website. I have a question for the national office. When was Adult Association dropped from the list? When did the Order of the Arrow make this list?

I also own a 1947 printing of the Handbook For Scoutmasters. Things are written a bit differently in that version. On page 10, right at the begining of the book, it states: THE AIM OF SCOUTING.Scouting trains for citizenship by inculcating in the boy, from within instead of from without, the qualities of Character, Health and Strength, Handcraft and Skill, Service to Others.

That is somewhat different than how the aims are listed today. Some of it still exists today using different language but I find it interesting that Handcraft and Skill has been dropped. I had to look up the word inculcating because I have never seen it used before. It means: Instill (an attitude, idea, or habit) by persistent instruction.

Also on page 10 the 1947 handbook talks about the Methods of Scouting. Scouting is game played by boys in boy gangs under boy leaders chosen by the gang, guided by a man backed by other men of the community. Scouting provides the boy with an active outdoor life, grants him recognition for mastering various skills, and gives him a chance to wear an attractive uniform. It holds before him the ideals of a true Scout, and encourages him to “help other people at all times”.

The Scout Way – 1) A Game, not a Science. Patrol Method – 2) The Scout Patrol, 3) Boy Leadership Men In Scouting – 4) The Scoutmaster, 5) Troop committee and local Council Scouters Activities – 6) Adventure in the out-of-doors, 7) Scout Advancement Uniform – 8) The Scout Uniform Ideals and Service – 9) The Scout Law, 10) The Scout Oath, or Promise – Service: Good Turns.

I love looking at the old literature and seeing how differently things were written back then. Of course, the biggest difference between Scouting in the 1940′s and today’s Scouting is that women can now serve as scoutmasters and other adult leadership positions. Back then they wrote “out-of-doors” instead of outdoors. Patrols are not called gangs in Scouting these days. I also like they way that Scouts have a chance to wear an attractive uniform. Have you seen the uniforms from the 1940′s?

This article is not meant as rant or a statement about Scouting as it is today. It is meant to show the differences in the way Scouting language has changed through the decades. I would challenge you to find some old handbooks and read them and see for yourself the way it has changed over its 100 year history. Or is it still the same?

(The following article was written by Brad Schulzetenberg, an alumni of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68. Brad was a member of the troop from 2000 to 2005. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout. It is the third of a series of guest articles written by former members of Troop 68.)

Over the past 100 years, there have been over 110 million young men that have called themselves members of the Boy Scouts of America. What makes Scouting a great organization is that if you were to ask each of these 110 million Boy Scouts about their experience you would get 110 million different responses. My personal Scouting experience started in May of 2000, and unlike many Scouts, without a previous Cub Scout background. At the time, my perception of Scouting was camping, hiking, and tying knots, so I was unsure of what the scouting program had to offer. As I reflect back on my years of Scouting, I realize the vast positive impact it has had on who I am today.

During my tenure as a Boy Scout, I was able to travel to some pretty cool places. In the summer of 2001, I attended the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Fort A.P. Hill Virginia. The 2001 National Jamboree was attended by over 40,000 scouts and leaders from around the world. I was fortunate enough to be one of the 72 Scouts from the Central Minnesota Council to have the opportunity to attend this event. I became a member of the Jamboree Troop 1417 with other Scouts from around Central Minnesota. In the months leading up to the Jamboree we had many meetings where we got to meet our fellow troop members, split into patrols, chose names, and designed troop and patrol flags.

One of the most unique experiences at the Jamboree was trading patches with other Scouts. Before the Jamboree, every Boy Scout Council designed a special patch for the event. Often times the patches were personalized for their particular area of the country. In addition to interaction with others, I also was able to participate in activities such as rock climbing, snorkeling, kayaking, and scuba diving. On our trip to Virginia for the National Jamboree we did a lot of sightseeing as well. We stopped in Cleveland to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, spent two days in Washington D.C., and on the trip home we stopped in Virginia Beach and Norfolk. Being able to interact with other Scouts from around the country, share stories, enjoy activities, and sightseeing was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me as a scout.

My most enjoyable Scouting experience was a hiking trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico during the summer of 2004. On this trip we spent 11 days hiking and camping in the wilderness while carrying everything that we needed to survive, including food, water, and sleeping gear. The Philmont experience is based around the principle of “low impact camping” in which the Scouts and leaders are encouraged to leave the campsites and hiking trails in the same, or better, condition as they were found. Each group of scouts and leaders that attend Philmont must complete a service project to improve hiking trails and campsites to preserve the natural environment. In addition to learning outdoor survival skills, I had the opportunity to hike the 12,441 foot tall Mount Baldy, which is the tallest point in Philmont. This was the most physically challenging and satisfying part of this trip. Everyone in our group made the hike to the top of the mountain which was a wonderful achievement or entire team. The Philmont experience is something I will always cherish and I hope someday I will have the opportunity to go again.

From the moment I became a Boy Scout at age 13 I always had the goal of becoming an Eagle Scout. Fortunately for me Troop 68 encouraged advancement and earning merit badges. When I first joined the troop there were several older members that had already become Eagle Scouts and they served as a good example for the younger scouts. During my years in scouting I attended many troop outings and summer camps as well as held a variety of leadership positions including patrol leader and senior patrol leader. This involvement helped me gain the understanding of the commitment needed to become an Eagle Scout.

For my Eagle project I held a drive in our local community and schools to accumulate school supplies and teaching materials for schools in Bosnia. I got this idea from a former Scout who was serving in the US military stationed in Bosnia at the time. In letters, he made me aware of the large need for supplies to help better the education. The support from the community was awesome, I received large amounts of supplies from local students and teachers. I even received a generous donation for the local Lions Club to purchase teaching materials. My Eagle Scout award has always been a rewarding accomplishment for me because less than five percent of all scouts have earned this award and it shows how much dedication and hard work I put forth to reach my goal.

My Scouting experience has benefited me in my adult life in ways other than just lifelong friends and memories. Many people understand the importance of the Eagle Scout Award and for that reason I have always kept this accomplishment on my resume. In doing so, it has given me opportunities that may not have otherwise been available. While interviewing for a Design Engineering job at 3M (my current job), I spent a good portion of the interview talking about my experiences in Scouting and my Eagle project. The interviewer (my current manager) is actively involved in Scouting and has a son that is also an Eagle Scout. My manager has since told me that my Eagle Award was an important consideration in his decision to give me a chance to interview and eventually offer me a job.

Through my job I have been a team leader for our 3M Engineering Community Giving campaign. As a leader of this team, I plan and coordinate volunteer events with other employees. My past experience doing service projects and leading my Eagle Project have given me a good perspective on how important service to others is. I have relied on my diverse background of service to others to help me identify volunteer opportunities for my company.

The Boy Scout organization has been vital in shaping me into the person I am today. I learned many life skills, had unique opportunities to travel, and learned how important giving back to others can be.

(The following article was written by Pat Christenson, an alumni of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68. Pat was a member of the troop from 1994 to 2001. He earned the Star Rank. It is the second of a few guest articles written by former members of Troop 68.)

Scouting was an invaluable time in my life that gave me a great background of experience and abilities that I find useful every day. Whether it is tying knots, starting fires, camping, using a knife properly, or just a state of mind as to how I may approach a given challenge, many things lead back to Scouting. This doesn’t even touch on the fact that it was just a lot of fun!

Probably the biggest lesson I learned in Scouting that I still fall back on to this day is to “be prepared.” I always keep this motto in mind as I go about my daily life. I try not to let things catch me by surprise and if there is anything I can do ahead of time to prepare for what’s in store, I will take the time to do so. Sometimes I may take a little too much time to prepare (just ask my wife), but I can’t begin to tell you how much this has lead my life in a great direction.

The other major lesson that I still try to maintain to this day is to “do a good turn daily.” This is an important reminder that what you do affects others, and you should always try to look for something good you can do to help others. By having this frame of mind, you will always be ready to lend a hand, or pitch in when needed and help make our society great. If everyone took the time to think of others and try to think of even just one thing a day to give to others or their community, this world would be a much better place. As much as I may have groaned about it as a teenager, doing the tasks to help out the community, like road cleanup, or helping to collect food for the food shelf, are things that I can look back on in my younger years and feel proud of. Those tasks give you a sense of worth that is very important in life.

As far as abilities, there are many things I feel confident about based on my time in Scouting. I learned many survival skills such as starting a fire, or making a shelter. I learned how to be a good steward of the environment and to leave any area better than when I arrived. This knowledge gives me a great deal of confidence that if I were to be in a situation where I was lost or stranded, I would know what to do.

Now, how about the really fun part! I was able to participate in many activities that I more than likely wouldn’t have been able to do if it wasn’t for Scouting. The biggest one for me was going backpacking at Philmont Scout Ranch. I have so many great memories of that trip, and it was an experience of a lifetime. It started with a road trip to New Mexico from Minnesota. Somehow, we ended up in a van that only had AM radio, but we made it through! We then spent the next several days backpacking over 70 miles through the hills and mountains, and participating in activities on the way. The guys that I was able to go with were a ton of fun. I can still hear Jay telling terrible jokes as we went to sleep and Brent busting a gut laughing. I definitely wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t for scouting.

There were many other activities that I enjoyed as well. We camped many times and in Scouting you are really given a lot of responsibility. You are given a budget and are tasked with preparing meals from start to finish, including the grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning. This definitely gives you a good perspective on how much work goes into planning and cooking meals at home as a kid. There were plenty of times when things didn’t work out so great and you also had to deal with the consequences of that. We weren’t all top chefs anyway! I think that is another great thing about Scouting in that you learn that things are not always given and prepared for you. You have to learn to fend for yourself and be responsible and accountable.

I had a lot of great times in scouting. I made some great friends, I made lifelong memories and I learned how to be a good citizen. It is a time I will always cherish and be proud of.

(The following article was written by Nathan Blommel, an alumni of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68. Nathan was a Boy Scout from 1988 to 1993. He has earned the Life Rank. This is the first of a series of guest articles written by former members of Troop 68.)

What Scouting means to me?
Scouting has taught me many things in life. As a scout, Scouting exposed me to fun activities, gave me a sense of pride and belonging, taught me about being responsible, and gave me many fond memories about summer camp and high adventure camp.

Fun Activities
Scouting introduced things to me that I would not have experienced if I had not been in Scouting including: hiking, camping (both in the summer and winter), downhill skiing, pizza parties, roller skating parties, pinewood derby races, and bowling.

Sense of Pride and Belonging
Although selling tickets for a scout breakfast, or selling wrapping paper or popcorn, or helping out with Adopt-A-Highway, wasn’t something that I looked forward to, it taught me about working hard to accomplish a goal. Whether that goal was a troop goal or a personal goal (to raise money for an upcoming trip), it taught me that nothing is ever given to us and that we need to work hard for everything that we have. Scouting also allowed me to get to meet more friends and get to know others in the community. To this day I keep in touch with friends who I met through Scouting whom I never would have had a chance to meet if it weren’t for Scouting.

Summer Camp/High Adventure Camp
Summer camp was always a blast because it allowed you to have a week to be with friends. In addition, you got to work on projects and complete a number of merit badges. It was the week of the summer that you looked forward to so you could be away from home to learn and do new things. My favorite memories of summer camp include frisbee golf, the campfires (with other troops involved), canoeing, cooking, and sail boating.
One of our troop’s high adventure camps that we attended was Philmont Scout Ranch. Philmont is located in New Mexico and consists of more than 214 square miles of camping/hiking. Philmont was where we spent 10 days hiking/back-packing in the mountains. Fond memories include: learning how to live on bare essentials, enjoying and appreciating the views and valleys of the mountains, doing team activities, and encountering live animals (including a bear).

Do I take anything that I learned from scouting and pass it on my family?
Yes, my son is active in Cub Scouts. Although I wasn’t real active with Cub Scouts (I did a lot more with Boy Scouts), when my son expressed an interest in Cub Scouts, I made sure to get him signed up because I knew he would get to experience so many fun things. He has been involved with scouting for less than a year and he has done many fun activities including the raingutter regatta, pinewood derby race, planting flowers, geocaching, touring a grocery store, attending a city council meeting, touring the airport, and building a model rocket.

Because of scouting, I love camping and being outdoors. As a family, we take numerous camping trips each year. Our family enjoys being outside together, fishing, and hiking, and of course- having campfires.
Another cool thing that I have passed on to our family is the game “Roses and Thorns”. Each night before bed, our kids tell us what their rose and thorn was for the day. We’ve been doing this since they were very young. My wife and I enjoy it because we learn a lot about what was their favorite thing and their least favorite thing about the day. At times, we are quite surprised with their answers. I know our kids like playing it too because they are always listening to each others’ answers and they sometimes will say something like, “Really, that was your thorn? I thought your thorn would have been…”

In conclusion, Scouting means a lot to me and my family. I’m very excited to watch my son in scouting and I hope that he gets as much out of it as I did.

If you have been following this blog of mine, you will have noticed that it is not a blog heavy about the things you should do to create a great Boy Scout troop, or about all the training you need to become a fantastic Boy Scout leader. No, this blog has basically been about my memories and experiences about being a Scoutmaster and Scouter in a small rural central Minnesota community. I have always thought of this blog being more entertaining then enlightening. Sometimes I think I should try to take these 800+ posts and try to make a book of it, but I just have not found the drive to do that. At least not net. But I do have a working title: The Master Thinks, And Unfortunately Wrote It Down.

Things will be a little different here next week. I have asked some alumni of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68 to write articles about their memories of being a Boy Scout and what, if anything, they have learned that helps them in their adult lives. I only have replies from three so far, but I am hoping for a few more. All three have stated that yes, they have learned a few things in Scouting and that they do look back on their Scouting years as good times. What do they say exactly? You will have to check out the posts next week to discover that.

I subscribe to the eBay Scouting Hot Finds Newsletter that is done by Jason Spangler. While most of the eBay auctions featured are for various patches once in awhile he lists something new that catches my eye. Today was one of those days. There is an auction that ends today for a 1950s MARX TIN LITHO CABIN, WITH SCOUTS AND ACCESSORIES. It is like a toy soldier action playset except that it features Boy Scouts figures at a summer camp setting. It features a scoutmasters cabin with 16 scouts, 29 different pieces of accessories and 14 North American wildlife figures. I never knew something like this existed. At the time I write this the bid is at $222 with six and a half hours left to go. The picture shown here is an overall view of the playset but more pictures are posted to the action that show more details. Check it out at http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=261187177809

While I would love to have this as a part of my Scouting collection but it is already out of my price range. (My scoutmaster pension was not as much as I had hoped for. jk) Of course, you never know. Maybe I have a reader of this blog who would like to purchase this set and give it to me as a present.